THE CITY REBORN FROM THE ASHES OF AMERICA'S MOST DISASTROUS FOREST FIRE

From our readers

Editor:

In honor of National Teacher & Staff Appreciation Week May 7-11, I am writing to encourage everyone to take a moment and thank the teachers and staff of the Wausaukee School District. We have many dedicated and wonderful teachers and staff who go above and beyond for our children and our community. This special week is a celebration in support of teachers and other members of the school staff such as principals, school secretaries, school nurses, assistants, librarians, kitchen staff, custodians and bus drivers. Teacher appreciation makes the world of education go around, educator Helen Peters once wrote. You may think everyone will send a note of appreciation  but many wont. A short note, a drawing, a poem or a handmade card from your child is a special gift that anyone would treasure. There is nothing more valuable than a few words of gratitude that can make a person feel that he/she has done a worthwhile job.

Personally, I would like to thank Mrs. Delfosse and Mrs. Caine-Fick for making learning fun for my children. It makes it easier to send my kids off to school everyday knowing that they will be spending time with devoted, loving and understanding teachers such as yourselves. Thank you to Penny Pociask for getting my children to school safe everyday, no matter what the weather conditions. I would also like to thank all the teachers, staff and parents that devote so much of their time volunteering to coach and/or provide after school activities. Thank you for making a difference in the lives of our children.

Sincerely,

Tina Sievert

To the Editor:

Residents in the Town of Athelstane:

Im writing this letter because recently I have had the chance to talk with many of the townspeople. To my understanding there are many concerns about how their tax dollars have been spent. The following should help clear some of those concerns.

In order for the Town of Athelstane to function at its best, there first must be a town board who all agree that the residents of the town and their tax dollars should be in the boards best interest. Since taking office I have been met with much resistance whenever Ive requested documents that are pertinent to performing my duties as town supervisor.

Under the direction of the previous board and former road foreman are a few examples of issues that affected the taxpayers in our town:

2. Purchasing a Western Star Plow Truck for approx. $170,000 that is designed for plowing interstates, not our smaller roads in Athelstane.

3. Because of a lack of maintenance records, there is no evidence to support regular maintenance had been done on the towns equipment.

4. Not following proper procedures or acquiring proper permits, and documents not being available when requested, has made the bridge issue on Benson Lake Road hugely problematic, and is a continued cost to the taxpayers of Athelstane to right this wrongdoing.

Most recently, the theft of a computer from the town hall that was not reported to proper authorities, but instead was brought to the boards attention at the April town meeting.

Under present supervisory are some of the projects being worked on or completed at this time:

1. Continue to coordinate with the DNR and Marinette County the work to be done on the Benson Lake Road Bridge area in order to bring it back to code.

3. Davis Road - repaired culvert extensions.

4. Nelson Road - ditched.

5. Kunckel Road - shared repair with Town of Stephenson.

7. Spinner Road - breaker rock and crushed limestone.

8. Fire Lane Road - repaired soft spots.

9. The towns equipment maintenance records are current and on file.

There have been many positive changes in our town. Past practices have shown that lack of accountability has not been in the best interest of the taxpayers dollars, much less the townspeople of Athelstane. You as taxpayers have a right to know where your money is going, and I hope this will shed some light on the subject. Please contact me with questions or any concerns that may not have been addressed in this letter. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Harry Meetz,

Supervisor

Town of Athelstane

Editor:

Why the Big Media is playing up the second coming of Tommy Thompson has me puzzled. He was a great red ink dabber a la Patrick Lucey. If he tells us that he served X number of years in public service, remind him that his service was to his bankroll.

The story carried by a local media has him in the $13 million bracket. We dont pay our Governors that kind of money.

The real very bad acts of Tommy were in dictator actions. He lifted $92 million from the Wisconsin Retirement Fund to sneak his budget into passing. A class action suit finally got that back, although a settlement stated he repaid $90 million. Political players always make deals.

He then decided that the State Superintendent of Public Instruction wasnt needed or was not his kind of administration. Of course, most people know that the State Superintendent is a constitutional office, and the Wisconsin Supreme Court reminded him, so he had to give up on that debacle.

One of my scouts reported that he put in an appearance at the Catholic Church in Elroy, from where he came. All the church goers were glad-handing Tommy, and maybe did think he was of the second Coming.